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TRAIN for hormone balance

It may come as a surprise to you that training, can in fact, make you gain fat! Yes that's right all that slogging it out pounding the pavement or endless kms on the treadmill could be increasing your waistline rather than decreasing it!

My philosophy has always been to workout smarter not harder with the healthy production of hormones at the forefront of your mind. If you're thinking that's me! I have been attending hardcore bootcamps for months now and I am still fat! Read on for some peace of mind my Shredders as I am here to educate & help you so your efforts will not be in vain.

Firstly we have to look at what hormones are secreted when we train and how we can produce more of the good ones and less of the bad. The main hormone responsible for fat gain from training is a pesky hormone called cortisol. Cortisol is a hormone released by the outer portion or cortex of the adrenal gland located on top of the kidneys when a person is under stress. When we release too much of this hormone it can contribute greatly to fat storage around the naval. As there are more cortisol receptor sites around the naval the fat holds on around this area predominately or what I like to call the cortisol pouch (lower abdominal fat). Because training is a stress on the body we all release cortisol when we train, the secret is to train right to balance this hormone.

Another important point to understand is that too much cortisol can effect possible thyroid function negatively so this will ultimately effect how you metabolise food & lose fat. The other hormone produced when we train is DHEA (or dehydroepiandrosterone) & is also produced by the adrenal glands. This hormones can help lean muscle development & fat loss so the more we can naturally produce in the body the better.

So to get a great balance of DHEA production & cortisol reduction lets look at the best methods of training to help.

Train for shorter periods of time

Whilst the old school mentality is to run as many kms as you can or do endless cardio, it really is not the best way to lose fat. Besides putting a lot of excess load on your joints it also sends cortisol production through the roof. Stick with 20min to 45min sessions that are predominantly resistance based. Check out my 20min VIP workouts HERE.

Strength training V's cardio

Strength training always trumps cardio as it produces more DHEA & less cortisol than that of cardio so for long term fat management choose to lift over long endurance cardio every time.

Supplement correctly post exercise

One of the ways we can combat excess cortisol production post exercise is to supplement with magnesium. This will blunt the production of cortisol and increase production of DHEA. I recommend chelated magnesium with D3 to help absorption. (not all magnesium products are created equal so make sure you get quality!) Click HERE to see what I recommend. Remember your body will struggle to create beautiful lean muscle where too much cortisol is present as it produces a catabolic or a breaking down of muscle in the body. Supplementing with magnesium will create an anabolic or lean muscle creating environment which is best if you want to seriously change the shape of your body.

Recover well

Remembering that exercise stresses the body out so if we are training & have other forms of stress on the body like lack of sleep or dehydration your exercise program may be in fact hindering you from way too much cortisol production and not making you leaner. Get enough sleep, supplement with electrolytes like potassium and amino acids like leucine. I recommend muscle and bone nutrition as it has both these ingredients plus more for recovery. Buy now!

Once you change your mindset you will actually notice that less training is actually more effective...wow what a relief! The days of running hundreds of kms and slogging it out on that boring cardio equipment is over Shredders! Find out the real secrets to changing the shape of your body and shredding fat all from the comfort of your own home training every rep with me! Only 20mins a day & oh my those muscles will be feeling it :)

"Sally Matterson is one of Australia’s foremost personal trainers. With over 13 years of industry experience, her cutting edge methods of training are in high demand helping actors, models, athletes & everyday people get their bodies in peak physical condition. As a qualified BioSignature Practitioner (study of hormones & their correlation to fat storage), she has revolutionised the way her customers and followers think about conventional means of weight loss." - Rockpool Publishing